Hailstorm
by Edwin4life
Summary: When a phone call in the middle of the night turns their lives unexpectedly upside down, a hailstorm ensues. MODERN AU
1. Chapter 1

If he had to wait even a moment longer, someone was going to die.

Gray scowled at the older woman behind the desk. All he was asking for was a damned room number, how long would she take to find it? Clenching his fists he tried to calm his breathing, everything was fine. Repeating those words over and over didn't make them feel any more true. Everything was not fine. He was standing in the hospital's lobby at 3 a.m. trying to find out what had happened to his girlfriend.

The woman cleared her throat,

"Mr. Fullbuster?" she asked, catching his attention. He stared at her, holding his breath in anticipation. Taking off her glasses she told him;

"Your friend is currently undergoing operation."

He froze, biting his lip.

"Is she ok?"

The words flew out of him angrily, and for the first time that night he felt a cold wave of terror wash over him. The woman smiled, the pity was clear in her eyes.

"The doctors are doing everything they can."

He felt his nails bite into his skin, as his fists clenched. A cold numbing sensation settled, his shoulders sagged.

"Someone will be with you shortly, please have a seat."

And that's what he did. Gray sat down in the nearly empty waiting room, not bothering to read any of the outdated magazines they had lying around. Instead he checked his phone.

 _ **3 new messages**_

The bright light of the device caused him to wince as he unlocked the screen.

There she was. Her face smiling warmly, as if about to laugh. She looked so pretty, her blue eyes practically sparkling. He felt his eyes begin to water, he had forgotten he'd made that picture his screensaver. No, he stopped the swirl of horrifying thoughts. Juvia was fine. Absolutely fine.

Blinking back tears he read the texts he had gotten from Natsu.

 ** _Gray!_**

 ** _WTF ice queen? Where did you go?_**

 ** _Dammit you knocked over Happy's water bowl._**

Gray rolled his eyes. He didn't care about the stupid cat's water bowl. He quickly texted roommate.

 ** _It's just water Flame brain._**

 ** _I'm at the hospital._**

He placed the phone on his leg, trying to keep it from bouncing it. Feeling it vibrate he glanced down.

Finally figure out that something is mentally wrong with you?

Sighing, he quickly typed.

 ** _I got a call, Juvia's in the hospital._**

He stared, mulling over the potential responses Natsu would give.

 _ **Damn. She ok?**_

Gray hesitated, then typed sadly;

 _ **I don't know.**_

"Gray?"

He jumped to his feet, snapping out of his dazed thoughts. Looking around the lobby he scanned the room, eyes falling on a blonde head.

"Lucy." he cried, gratitude lacing his words. He ran towards his best friend throwing his arms around her.  
"What are you doing here?"

Looking over her shoulder he glanced at the clock, it's hands read; 3:28 a.m.

Lucy looked at him, he could see the bags under her eyes, she had probably been up writing her novel as usual. She had recently been losing multiple nights sleep to finish it. She spread her arms wide, cracking a pained smile.

Letting her wrap her arms around him Gray rested his head against her shoulder. Melting into the needed hug.

"Natsu texted me when you left." she said into his ear.

"And when he said you were at the hospital and Juvia…" she paused as she felt Gray tensen at the mention of the girl.

Pulling back she eyed his pyjamas and messy hair. "Have you heard any news?" she asked quietly, her voice cracking slightly.

Seeing her eyes tear up Gray bit his own lip. He didn't want to cry but seeing Lucy in tears caused pain and worry to spread through him.

What if Juvia was seriously hurt, but she had to be right? She was in the hospital for crying out loud. What if she were dying and no one was telling him anything, or what if… a small whimper escaped his lips, as a hot tear traced down his cheek. Startled, Lucy looked up at him, wiping at her own eyes she gently squeezed his arm. "Hey, it's gonna be fine." Taking a deep breath Gray nodded. Lucy was right, Juvia was fine.

"Hey, where's Gajeel?" He saw her quickly scan the room for Juvia's roommate.

"Not sure…" whipping out his phone he typed;

 _ **Gajeel?**_

 _ **Where are you?**_

 _ **You coming to the hospital?**_

Seeing how he wasn't going to answer Gray shrugged. Gajeel was Juvia's first emergency contact number, surely he was on his way.

"Let's go sit, it might take a while."

The pair walked over to some empty seats and sat down, waiting.

As the hours passed by, agonizingly slow, Lucy fell asleep, her head resting against Gray's shoulder. He counted each breath she took and tried not to wonder whether Juvia too, was breathing.

 **A/N: Hello~ Thanks for reading I guess, hope you enjoyed that first chapter. More to come in the next few days! Feel free to leave a review telling me what you thought (criticism appreciated)**


	2. Chapter 2

After deleting yet another passage that wasn't making sense, Lucy was ready to throw her whole damned laptop out the window. Groaning she proceeded to slam her head against her desk, hoping the impact would help get the ideas flowing. her forehead had just begun to sting when she heard her phone _ping_.

 _Natsu._

That was her first thought, as he often did text her late at night to remind her to sleep properly. Hesitating, she peered over at her phone. And indeed it was Natsu but instead of his typical "you better be asleep, weirdo." the words made her freeze in shock.

 ** _Lucy._**

 ** _Gray ran out of the apartment randomly_**

 _ **I just texted him, apparently he's at the hospital**_

Grabbing the phone quickly she replied urgently.

 ** _What? Why? Was he hurt?_**

She tapped her fingers anxiously against the table as she watched the Natsu's typing icon.

 _ **No.**_

She sighed, thank the gods. Pausing, if Gray wasn't hurt then...who was?

 ** _?_**

Eyes glued to the screen she began twisting a lock of her blonde hair. Praying that none of their friends were hurt.

 ** _It's Juvia._**

Lucy froze, cold terror spread through her. No. Before she knew it she was on her feet, her fingers flying across the keyboard.

 ** _What hospital?_**

Not even checking for a response she grabbed her jacket and slipped on her boots. By the time she'd reached the  
door her phone buzzed once more. Address in hand she ran out into the night.

* * *

"Mr. Fullbuster?" a soft voice called out into the nearly empty waiting room. Lucy looked up from her book slamming it shut. She saw the doctor before he saw her, she waved him over urgently. Heart racing she looked over at Gray. His head leaning on his arm, breathing softly. Lucy smiled gently, then turned to the Doctor. He sat down in the chair across from them, pushing his wire rimmed glasses up his narrow nose.

"Are you a friend of Juvia Lockser?" he asked, offering a strained smile.

Lucy nodded.

"I'm Lucy and he's Gray Fullbuster." she motioned over to her sleeping companion. The doctor nodded, looking down at his clipboard. Lucy bit her lip, staring at the man's face, searching for any indication as to the type of news he was about to share.

"Well miss Lucy, I'm afraid I have some bad news."

* * *

A loud crashing sound caused Gajeel to groan. Rolling over in his bed he sighed, that was the third alarm clock this week. He needed to stop smashing them. Sighing he threw the covers aside and hopped out of bed. He trudged towards the kitchen, stretching out his stiff arms. Yawning, he poured himself a glass of water. Staring out the small kitchen window he felt a soft rub against his leg.

"Hey Lily." he said, crouching down to stroke the black cat. His loving strokes were met with an insistent mewling.

"Tch, shut up will ya?" Gajeel scolded.

"What you still hungry or something? Juvia not give you enough food?"

Juvia.

She was supposed to wake him up last night to let him know she'd made it home alright. An uneasy feeling creeped up his spine. Juvia had never forgotten to wake him. He shook his head, she probably forgot, or was too tired. Walking over to his roommate's room, he knocked gently on the door.

"Juvia?"

No answer.

Heart racing he tried the knob. It was unlocked, that had to be a good sign, right?

Pushing the door open gently he peered into the room. Taking a step inside he looked around hesitantly, Juvia didn't like him being in her room when she wasn't home. But she was. She was probably hidden under her blue covers. She had to be.

It took Gajeel a few moments to fully search the room with his eyes. Everything was blue, Juvia's favourite colour, meaning she could camouflage easily with her blue hair. Not seeing her he walked slowly towards the bed. Hesitantly reaching out his arm, her patted the duvet. Nothing. An uneasy feeling burst through him, causing him to throw the sheets off the bed. Shaking his head he muttered under his breath.

"No, no, no, no."

Pacing the room frantically he checked the closet, under the bed, all these places he knew she wasn't hiding in. Until he saw it. Her pyjamas, hanging on the bathroom door as they did every night. Meaning...she hadn't come home last night. Running back to his room his feet slipped on the wooden floor. Throwing the door to his room open he ran to his desk. Snatching his phone he unlocked it in one fluid motion. Noticing 7 missed calls and 2 voicemails. Tapping on it, he froze, eyes widening. The last voicemail had been from the hospital.

* * *

 **A/N: And once again we end in suspense~ What happened to Juvia? I promise you'll find out next chapter.**


	3. Chapter 3

It hurt. Everything hurt. Her head, her leg, her back. Pain pulsed through her constantly, keeping her in a state of full agony. It wasn't helping that everything was black. She was surrounded in it, as if her entire world had been submerged to the bottom of the ocean. There were noises however. They were muffled, sirens, voices, maybe even an engine somewhere. She tried opening her mouth to cry out, nothing seemed to happen. And then she went under.

* * *

"What?" Gray yelled into his phone. He had been at the hospital for hours, his back ached from sitting in the small waiting room chair.

"I'm sorry," the old lady on the other end of the line told him. "I'm afraid Lyon hasn't been in here in weeks."  
Gray scowled, where was that icy bastard?

"That's alright ma'am, thanks again." he said, frustration clear in his tone.

"Who was that?" Gray looked up as Lucy sat down next to him, handing him his iced coffee, as requested. He nodded his thanks.

"Just the old lady who runs the place Lyon works at."

Lucy nodded. "And?"

Gray sighed.

"Well she says he hasn't shown up to work in weeks."

Lucy raised a brow quizzically.

"That's strange."

Gray shrugged, "Not really, just means he's out on a job."

"Job?"

"Yeah, he works for an Ice sculpting company, he's probably somewhere doing some venues or something. Tch, rich people and their ice."

Lucy sipped her beverage, Gray assumed it was green tea, knowing how Lucy didn't like the bitter taste of coffee but still needed the caffeinated boost.

"Gajeel texted." she told him.

Putting the straw to his lips Gray took a well earned sip. Relaxing a little as the cold spread down his throat.

"He said he'll be here soon."

Gray scowled.

"About time Metal head got here."

Lucy said nothing, and a grave silence built between the two.

"Gray…" Lucy started, her eyes already brimming with tears.

"About what the doctor sai-"

"I don't care what he said." Gray snapped angrily.

"He doesn't know shit." he turned away, fuming. He clenched his fists and desperately tried to calm his breathing. Juvia is fine, Juvia is fine, Juvia is fine… He repeated the words over and over again, praying that they would be true.

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen this is your driver speaking, this bus is experiencing some technical difficulties, I'm afraid all passengers are going to have to exit the vehicle and wait for the next bus...it should be arriving shortly."

A collective groan rose from the many passengers. After waiting for 40 minutes in the cold, they had boarded a bus that had been going about as slow as an elderly lady's scooter, and now it was broken down. Unloading in a more or less orderly fashion, the huge group stood miserably on the sidewalk. Gajeel pulled out his phone, he didn't have time to waste here, dammit. Juvia was in the godforsaken hospital and he needed to get to her. Tapping his foot he took a step into the street, peering down the road to see if any buses were approaching. Nothing. He growled under his breath, this was insanity! Not to mention his fingers were practically freezing off. Checking his phone, the bus wasn't supposed to arrive for another twenty minutes. That was nearly how long it would take to walk the rest of the way. He paused. Muttering a few curses Juvia would not be proud of, Gajeel began walking to the hospital.

The walk was long, and the air around him freezing. Digging through his multiple coat pockets Gajeel prayed he had brought a pair of gloves. Fumbling around, his hands touched some sort of wire. He pulled it out, careful as to not disturb the other contents in the pocket. His earbuds! He gave a small smile, at least he could listen to some music now, distract himself from what could be waiting inside the hospital. Plugging them in, he placed a bud into each ear. His finger hovered over the screen as he noticed he hadn't even checked the second voice message. Hesitantly he tapped on the app, dialing his voicemail code.

"You have one unheard message." The robot woman informed him.

"To hear this message press one. To dele-" He tapped one.

"Playing message."

All was silent, and for a moment Gajeel thought he hadn't hit the right button until he heard it. A small hiccuping sound. The sound Juvia made when she cried. His hands began to shake, it  
couldn't be. He strained his ears hoping to hear anything else.

"G-Gray-sama…" he heard her whisper through choked sobs.

"Juvia is sorry!" her sobbing intensified.

"Juvia will make it up to you…" The message ended, a hollow _beep_ rang in his ears.

"The message is completed, to delet-" He shut off his phone.

Juvia only ever cried this much when horrible things happened or...she had been drinking too much. Gajeel felt sick, she had been drunk. She had been out, drunk, in the middle of the night, alone. Heart spurring, he broke into a sprint.

* * *

 **A/N: So...I know i said we'd figure out what happened to Juvia but it really didn't feel right giving away any more than that. Sorry. Hope you enjoyed though ^-^ Also for that person wondering what the pairing are, here are the current ones in this story: Gruvia (obviously) Gajevy, Nalu, I'm also hoping to add in a few others *cough* Lyredy and Fraxus *cough* but we'll see how it plays out. Also excessive amount of BROTPs, you have been warned.**


	4. Chapter 4

"Mr. Fullbuster?"

Honestly the next person to call him 'Mr. Fullbuster' was gonna get the short end of the stick. Looking up, Gray met eyes with one of the nurses. Holding a clipboard in one hand, she approached him.

"Miss Lockser, has been moved to her own room, if you would like, you may go visit her now."

Gray was already on his feet by the time she had finished talking. Startled by the sudden movement, Lucy too had snapped awake and was now standing.

"Woah, wait, what?" she mumbled, her voice coated with exhaustion.

Ignoring his friend Gray approached the nurse. Lowering his head so that they were eye to eye, he glared at her as menacingly as he could.

"Where. Is. She?" he hissed, he saw her wince as his breath fanned her face.

"Fourth floor, r-room number thirteen. She's still unconscious, b-but you're allowed to go sit up there if you'd like." she stuttered, her calm composure withering. He gave her a curt nod, then walked back towards where he and Lucy had been seated.

"Gray, did she just give you a room number?"

He nodded.

"Lucy, you mind waiting here for Gajeel to show?"

He saw her hesitate. It's not that Gajeel wouldn't be able to find out the room number on his own, Gray just wanted to see his girlfriend by himself. He needed a few moments of solitude. He saw in her eyes, that she understood, even before she gave him a small nod.

"Sure, text me if anything happens though."

Gray smiled, or at least tried to.

"You got it."

There it was! The damned hospital! Gajeel nearly burst with joy. His breaths fogged up in front of him. Despite the cold, his face flamed, all that running, he must be pretty out of shape. Remembering his abs, he dismissed the thought.

Despite it being nearly noon, it was still dark out, heavy clouds blocking out all sunlight. He wouldn't be surprised if it began to snow. Finally able to breathe without his lungs burning, Gajeel picked up the pace once more, running that final stretch to the hospital.

11...12...13

Standing outside the closed door, Gray took in a deep breath. Then another. He wasn't sure if he was prepared to see what was behind that door, especially after what the doctor said. Images of Juvia's body; bruised, bloodied, even severed, flashed in his mind. He shook his head firmly. No. He reached for the door, hands shaking. Grasping the cold knob, he turned it downwards. The door clicked, as opened the door and stepped inside.

 **A/N: Yooo 4 chapters in 4 days? WITCHCRAFT! It's a pretty short chapter though, sorry. Shout out to my sister Kimi for helping me edit my awful writing. (P.S WHO ESLE IS SUPER EXCITED FOR THE NEW FAIRY TAIL CHAPTER?!)**


	5. Chapter 5

"Where the fuck is my friend?" Gajeel asked, slamming his fists onto the front desk, causing the old woman behind it to jump.

"U-um, sir I'm going to have to ask you to calm down." she muttered softly, pushing her glasses up her nose.

"I'm not gonna calm down, my friend is hurt so tell me where I can bloody find her!"

He knew he looked like an insane person, screaming at this lady, his hair flying wildly around him .It probably didn't help that he was wearing all black...not to mention his multiple piercings. Honestly, he couldn't care less. He needed to see Juvia.

"Gajeel?"

He turned on the voice. His face, set in a grimace, softened as he recognized the speaker.

"Bunny girl?"

Despite him using the nickname he knew she was not fond of, the blonde ran to him, enveloping him in a fierce hug. Gajeel's arms, hung awkwardly by his sides, unsure of how to react to the sudden display of affection. Not letting the awkwardness go on, Lucy pulled away.

"Gajeel what the hell took you so long?!"

She cried, hitting him on the arm. Wincing he rubbed his arm, what was wrong with this girl? Hugging him then hitting him? He opened his mouth to answer her, but she cut him off.  
"What happened to Juvia? Did she tell you where she was going?"

She shot question after question, her mouth shooting a million words per hour. Scrunching his eyes shut he tried to block her out. Until he simply burst.

"Shut up will ya?!"

Lucy paused mid-sentence. She glared at him, but noticing the genuine fear on his face, her gaze softened.

"I'm sorry." She said, extending an arm out for him to take.

"C'mon, let's go see her."

Biting his lip, he took her hand, letting himself be pulled to the elevators.

The room was small, and the curtain wall that divided it made it even more so. Taking another hesitant step, Gray's eyes landed on a bed this side of the curtain. Holding his head he approached it cautiously. Peering over at the head beneath the sheets, he jumped back, cheeks aflame. It was a man. Gray sighed in relief seeing as how the man seemed to be asleep. He whispered a few curses, what if this wasn't the right room? Had the nurse given him the wrong number? Maybe he had misread the door number? No, it was room 13 and this was the 4th floor, he was certain. Then that meant; Juvia was on the other side of the curtain. Walking quietly as to not awaken the sleeping man, he carefully slipped through the fabric wall.

And then he saw her. Time froze for a moment, as Gray took in the sight of her. She was covered in medical equipment, multiple needles and tubes protruding from her. A huge gash cut through her cheek bone down beneath her hospital robe. And her eyes...they were covered, a thick strip of gauze, wrapped around her head, covered her eyes. He fell to his knees, reaching under the countless blankets to grab her hand. It was cold. He felt himself shake as the grief overtook him, his cheeks wetten as an endless stream of tears poured out. This wasn't right. He wanted to scream, to call a nurse and demand they take all the machines off of her, take the wires and needles out of her. More than anything, he just wanted her to wake up. To sit up, take the material off her eyes and to smile at him. He squeezed her hand, desperately trying to warm it up. He hated himself, this was all his fault. Him and his stupid pride, god, he was such a baby. She had practically begged him to accompany her to Lyon and Meredy's engagement party, and yet he told her no. He wasn't even sure why he had, it was just a party, and Meredy and him got along fine, hell, even him and Lyon had started to patch things up. He let her go by herself, he'd even said a few mean words, not that Juvia hadn't returned them, but still. All this was his fault. He was just stubborn, he hadn't wanted to give up his pride. He should've just said yes, dammit, now he might lose her...and those last words they'd exchanged... He felt sick, his crying intensified as the regret pooled in his mind. Every sob felt as though it were being ripped from his chest. He squeezed her hand tighter, praying to any form of higher being to bring her back.

"I-I'm sorry." He managed to choke out.

The self loathing nearly overwhelmed him, as he pressed his forehead to the palm of her hand. After an eternity of weeping he felt a comforting weight press against his shoulder. Looking up, he saw Lucy and Gajeel standing behind him. Lucy had placed her hand on his shoulder, and now offered him a pained smile, a tear slipping down her cheek. Gray looked at her, sniffling. He felt himself being pulled against a warm body. The two hugged tightly, holding each other, neither one wanting to let go. A loud crash emerged from the corner of the room, looking over Lucy's shoulder Gray noticed Gajeel. He had knocked over a glass of water that had been left on the table, his face looked horrified, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"J-Juvia?"

Was all Gajeel uttered before dashing back out of the room.

 **A/N: Ok so...that happened. I guess this sort of explains what happened to Juvia right? hehehe~ Well writing Gray's emotions was really painful for me, sooooo I'm hoping, it gives you a bit of feels. Lots of hugging in the chapter, eh? Also don't get used to me publishing a chapter everyday school's starting soon and my spare time is dwindling ;-;**


	6. Chapter 6

Gajeel ran down the hall, his head reeling. He couldn't stand to be in that room. Seeing Juvia like that...it was too much. He needed to breathe, he needed... _Levy_. He patted his pockets anxiously, searching for his phone. Pulling it out he let out a breath. Levy would know what to do, he quickly dialed her number. Placing the phone to his ear he counted the ring.

One...two...three… screwing his eyes shut, he prayed for her to answer.

Four...fi-

"Hello?"

He sighed in relief.

"Levy…" he choked, dammit, he was about to cry.

"Gajeel?" she asked nervously.

Blinking back hot tears he breathed deeply.

"Ju-Juvia." His voice broke unwillingly, he felt himself begin to crack.

"Where are you?" her voice held a sort of reassuring authority.

He told her, he could practically see her face, calculating how long it would take for her to get there. He didn't even have to ask, and that's what he loved about her.

The chilly weather was welcomed, as Gajeel stepped outside. The cold refreshed him from the stuffy hospital air, glancing around he took a seat on a ledge and waited for Levy's arrival. He kept replaying that moment in his head, Gray's agonized sobs, Lucy running at him...Juvia. He clenched his fists, what had happened? How could she have gotten so hurt? He knew the answer of course. Lucy had told him in the lobby; Juvia had been hit by a car. The thought alone made him want to puke. He couldn't stop picturing it, her walking across the road in the dark, getting caught in the headlights, maybe even screaming. Was she conscious afterwards? Did she feel any pain? How long had she just been laying on the side of the road until the ambulance arrived? Placing his hands over his face, he tried to keep the dark thoughts out. A brisk tap on his shoulder urged him to look up.

"Levy!" he exclaimed, jumping to his feet.

She smiled at him.  
"Yo! So what's going on because Lucy won't answe-"

He tackled her into a hug, earning a surprised yelp from the girl. Burrowing his face in the crook of her neck, he desperately tried to hold back his tears. He felt her small arms reach up, pulling him in closer.

"It's ok." she whispered, gently stroking his hair. He felt the hot tears escape his eyes, He felt bad for getting Levy's sweater wet, but he didn't want her to see him cry. Quivering, he sobbed softly into the girl's comforting embrace.

"Gajeel!" Gray croaked as the boy ran out the room.

Lucy stood, wiping her tears on her sleeve.

"Should we go after him?" She asked.

A silence followed as the two looked over at Juvia. Neither of them wanted to leave her, but Gajeel…

The door opened slowly, their heads snapped up turning towards the sound.

"Gaje-" Lucy began but paused, the man in the doorway was not Gajeel. He didn't notice the two at first and stepped inside. He began to remove his coat and hung it neatly on the hook on the door. He had long green hair tied in a lazy ponytail at the top of his head, Gray couldn't help but stare as he walked over to the other patient's bed and sat in the chair next to it. He let out an exhausted sigh, gazing at the man in bed. Gray exchanged a panic glance with Lucy.

 _What do we do?_

He tried to ask her. She shrugged helplessly. The green haired man must've heard her move or something because he jumped to his feet awkwardly. Stuttering, he rubbed a hand behind his neck. Gray stared as his face reddened.

"I'm sorry! I didn't realize you were here…"

It was Lucy who stepped forward, she offered the man a warm smile.

"No, no, it's fine. Our bad for not saying anything." Gray stared incredulously as she chuckled. A warm sense of pride filled him as he watched his friend act all cheery when she clearly wasn't. Lucy was strong, stronger than Gray ever could've been. She extended a hand to the stranger. He walked over and shook it, returning her smile, for a fleeting moment his eyes darted over to Juvia's bed, his smile wavered.

"I'm Lucy," she told him, grabbing his attention from Juvia's unconscious form.

"and this is my friend Gray." an awkward silence followed, where she debated introducing Juvia. The man nodded,

"I'm Freed," he said motioning to himself,

"and that guy behind the curtain is Laxus, my bo- my friend."

He finished awkwardly, his face returning to it's brilliant shade of red.

"Boyfriend, you bastard." A low voice from the other side of the curtain said.

Gray hadn't thought it possible but Freed's face managed to turn even redder.

"T-that's what I meant." he muttered at the curtain.  
"Oi, mind drawing the curtain so that I can actually see my new roommate?"

The voice; Laxus said. Freed turned to Gray and Lucy, checking to see if that would be ok. They both nodded, earning a sweet smile from Freed. As he eagerly drawed back the curtain dividing them. Laxus was hoisted on his elbows, his blonde hair spiking in every direction. HIs eyes scanned them, going from Lucy, to Juvia, to Gray. Locking eyes with him, Gray felt a sort of shock, jolt through him.

"Gray?"

 **A/N: So, this chapter took a little longer to write, mostly cause school is starting up again and I needed to organize my things (also the spoilers for the new chapter made it hard to write) but anyways here you go~ As promised ;)**


	7. Chapter 7

Everyone stared, eyes darting back and forth between Laxus and Gray.

"You two know each other?" Freed asked, eyeing Gray.

Gray stared at the man.

"Do we?"

Laxus nodded.

"Don't you remember?"

Gray continued to stare blankly at him.

Laxus huffed, "You were that drunk?" he asked irritably.

Gray turned to Lucy to see if she knew what this man was talking about.

She shrugged at him.

"You came to my bar a while back, one of the weirdest customers I've ever had."

"Wait he's _the_ Gray?" Freed cut in.

Laxus smiled at his boyfriend.

"Heh, yeah."

A sinking feeling blossomed in Gray's gut as he imagined what his drunk self could've possibly done.

"What did he do?" Lucy asked skeptically.

The couple laughed together, as Lucy and Gray exchanged yet another questioning glance. It wasn't until Gray turned, eyes falling on the bed, and his broken girlfriend laying upon it, did he remember why they were there. Swallowing, he turned on the still laughing men.

"Sorry, I think I'm should go find Gajeel...Lucy, mind helping me look?" he croaked softly.

Halting their laughs the two, nodded.

"No, no, you go look for him." Laxus said, shooting Gray a smirk.

"We'll keep her company." He winked at Lucy, earning a small slap from Freed.

"We'll keep a close watch on your lady friend here." He winked at Lucy, as Freed slapped him on the arm.

"Ok then, see you in a bit."

Gray nodded hesitantly, and walked out the door.

Wiping away his tears, Gajeel glanced over at the girl seated next to him. Levy seemed to be making a point of not meeting his gaze, as she fiddled with the end of her scarf. Blowing his nose, he chuckled.  
"What?" Levy snapped, turning on him.

"You're wearing them." He stated smugly.

"Huh?"

He pointed to her ears where a pair of small silver hoops hung. He'd given them to her for her birthday but, hadn't seen her wear them. He'd begun to think she never would.

Noticing what he meant, Levy's face burst aflame. Covering her ears with her hands, she cried;

"Idiot! I just forgot to take them out!"

He blinked.

"Take them out?"

She huffed, her breath fogging up in front of her.

"Yeah." She muttered, her cheeks stubbornly staying pink.

"I wear them all the time at home."

Gajeel had needed to lean in to hear that last part, and surely his own had grown warmer.

"You mean...you wear them?" He questioned, softly. She turned to face him, her nose practically touching his.

"Sometimes."

Her warm breath fanned his face, his eyes darted down to her mouth. Heart ramming into his chest, he licked his own lips. They were so close, he could just lean in an inch and they'd be kissing. The mere thought caused his heart to triple it's speed. Levy seemed to be thinking the same thing, as he saw her slowly lean in closer, her eyes fluttering close. Was this really happening? Gajeel asked himself as he shut his own eyes.

"Gajeel!"

The two snapped apart. Gajeel sprang to his feet, ignoring Levy's scarlet face. He saw Gray run across the parking lot, eyes wildly scanning the area. He breathed out a sigh of relief, Gray hadn't seen them. Fuck. He'd messed up. Now was hardly the time for such things. He kicked himself mentally. Juvia was in the hospital fighting for his life and here he was...He shook his head violently, he was horrible. He ran over to Gray, leaving Levy behind. He heard her small cry of surprise as he sprinted away. Muffling the guilt he felt for leaving her reached Gray.

"What do you want?"

"What the hell?!" Gray gasped, startled by Gajeel's sudden appearance.

Gajeel clenched his fists, worry spreading through him. What if Gray was here to give him news about Juvia.

"Where'd you go?" Gray asked, his voice frosty as the air around them.

Gajeel stared silently down at his boots, shame colouring his ears red.

Gray sighed, awkwardly placing a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"It's ok, let's just...head back, ok?"

Gajeel stiffened, Images of Juvia's form laying in the bed flashed in his mind.  
He shook his head, his legs feeling on the verge of giving out.

The two met eyes, and Gajeel saw it. Anger, fear, and pain. Gray's dark eyes held so much pain it was nearly overwhelming. But worst of all was the guilty look in his stare, Gray blamed himself. He wasn't sure why but the thought didn't bode well with Gajeel.

His phone vibrated, in his pocket. Looking apologetically at Gray, he reached to check it.

 _Gajeel?_

It was Levy. A pang of guilt burst in his gut, he stared at the keyboard, wondering what to say to her.

 _Sorry._

"So…" Lucy started awkwardly, sitting in the chair by Juvia's bed, she stared, as she heard Gray's footsteps fade away.

"What did Gray do?"

An evil glint in Laxus' eye told her she may not want to know.

Freed chuckled as he took a seat between his boyfriend and the curtain.

"Well, Blondie, your friend is one hell of a drunk." Laxus told her.

Lucy smiled, remembering all the encounters she'd had with her friend whilst he was drunk.

"He came into the bar one night, I think it was a monday too." Laxus laughed.

"The place was practically empty, and he just sat down at the bar and ordered the first things on the menu. Thing is; first things on our menu is our signature chicken wings, customers call them Fairy wings."

It was Freed who laughed this time.

"Much to your dismay." he muttered under his breath.

Laxus ignored him and continued.

"Anyways, guess he was asking for drinks 'cause he got all pissed and asked if I were mocking him. I showed him the menu, and he just screamed and ate the chicken wings."

Lucy give a confused look, this hardly sounded like Gray.

"He ate all three baskets mind you, then he apologized for his behaviour, and ordered a few drinks. Afterwards, we had a very long conversation over the importance of carrots for one's health, it was actually really nice."

Lucy was beyond lost.

"Before he left though, he was really drunk so I made him call a cab, he showed me a picture of his girlfriend. He stood by the doorway for five whole minutes telling me how much he loved her. It was beyond cheesy, so I kicked him out." Laxus sighed, a smile playing on his lips.

"He tried to tell me some of the cheesy stuff, pretending he'd made it up." Freed said, shaking his head in laughter.

"Didn't take me long to figure out, he was plagiarizing a drunk."

"Oi!" Laxus cried.

Lucy giggled, these two weren't so bad. She'd thought staying behind would've been awkward but she was really enjoying herself.

"Never would've thought of Gray as a sappy drun-" she was cut off by a sudden beeping noise behind them. Juvia's heart monitor!

Panicked she jumped to her feet, turning towards her friend.

"Freed, call the nurse." Laxus yelled over the obnoxious wailing.

Freed had already hit the button.

Heart beating wildly Lucy grabbed Juvia's cold hand.

 _Shit._

 **A/N: well this chapter took longer than usual, huh? I did try to make it longer though. Well to be fair I just moved, and started a new school so...stuff's been pretty insane, also it was pretty hard to write Gruvia after the recent chapters (probably why I wrote more Gajevy in this one hehe~) Well let me know what you think. The more motivation the faster I write XD**


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